The Chandeleur Islands are a chain of barrier islands in the northern Gulf located approximately 80 km offshore that support the only marine seagrass beds in Louisiana. These seagrass meadows rely on the protection provided by the islands to survive. Here we share the results from a long-term seagrass monitoring program and a study to inform restoration of the Chandeleur Islands to benefit seagrass (Chandeleur Islands Restoration Project for Seagrass, ChIRPS) and describe trends in seagrass species distribution and condition over time, including the current status of seagrass at the Chandeleur Islands. Monitoring has identified a decline in seagrass cover and shifts in species distribution and dominance over time, both of which are likely driven by a loss of land area of the Chandeleur Islands and changing environmental conditions. Despite these losses in seagrass cover, the Chandeleur Islands remain a hotspot for seagrass diversity, as all five seagrass species that grow in the northern Gulf are still present at the Islands where they provide a range of ecosystem functions such as critical habitat for a variety of vertebrate and invertebrate species.